Category Archives: ARTS & CULTURE

Next Thursday night we celebrate the launch of Calski’s Folkus EP at The Bearded Lady, West End. DJ Katch (Resin Dogs/Hydrofunk Records) & I AM D on supports to get shit lit. Entries $5 and doors are from 8pm.

“Southside Soul” is kicking off once again tonight in Burn City. This month, local PBS legend Ronin (Hippopotamus Rex)and his mate Heata (The Royal Runners/Hired Goons) will be hitting the 1’s & 2’s for a night of heavy Funk 45’s and Northern Soul for y’all to get ya groove on to. Resident DJ’s Big Daddy Warbucks & DJ Lady Soul will as always be bringing the soul for ya ear to hear throughout the night too. Doors at 8pm & $5 entry.

Brisbane MC/Producer Calski has announced the release of the third single from his EP ‘Folkus’. The track, ‘Just Clap’, is an undeniably funky dancefloor starter featuring renowned Canberra-born MC, Hau, and will be released on 7” vinyl by pioneer Queensland hip hop label Hydrofunk Records.

The ‘Just Clap’ 7” is out 19 July 2016 and boasts the equally impressive B-side track ‘One Hand On The Bible’ featuring favourites Briggs and I AM D. While the EP ‘Folkus’ drops on the same date, those who purchase the ‘Just Clap’ 7″ vinyl single will receive the full 5 track EP via free download. Along with the vinyl tracks ‘Folkus’ features Aus MC’s Dialectrix, Sinks & Raven.

Calski has been a consistent and unmatched presence in the Hip Hop community in Australia since the early 2000’s. Known for his unmistakable production and profound lyricism, Calski is also a DJ and multi-instrumentalist, playing bass, keys and guitar.

Having supported the likes of Ghostface Killah (USA), Public Enemy (USA), Total Eclipse (USA), The Herd, Urthboy, Mantra, Spit Syndicate and Joelistics, Calski has long been considered a peer amongst Australian Hip Hop greats and attributes his style to the influences of Pete Rock, 9th Wonder, DJ Premier, Black Milk, Apollo Brown and more.

I’m mad late on this but it’s great to such a stand up and humble dude like Delta documenting and sharing his experience of Hip-Hop culture in New York..Shit makes me wanna take the pilgrimage again. Hard out!

This 4 part series follows Australian Hip Hop artist Ben Delta as he journeys through boroughs of New York, in episode 1 Delta visits the Bronx.

A Visit to the TATS CRU studio in Hunts point is some fun viewing as Nicer ( one of the founders of the legendary Graffiti crew ) is in a mood to talk about the history of New York and how graffiti spread across the world.

The second part of the episode takes us to the home of Lord Finesse ( DITC ). Ness gives us an insight into what he looks for in records and how different sounds can be the basis of a production, he also discusses working with Delta ( which is explored in more detail in a upcoming episode).

This was made for the love of the music and culture, Delta has always carried the torch high for Australia so we thought it time we showed everyone what’s been going on.
– Luke Eblen

As the weekend approaches so too does another World Record Store Day. For many, it’s kind of like Valentine’s Day and other gimmick orientated days – why should we be told to show love on one day specifically, and not all year round? As many diggers are 365 and dedicated to finding that hidden gem in dusty crates, many do not subscribe to this day. Well, fuck that! I love it. It’s a great celebration of all things music, culture, independence and a kunt load of piss with good mates! Sounds dope to me!

So as many rush out to buy that 20th edition of Dilla’s Fuck Tha Police, Illmatic, Operation Doomsday & a slew of other re-re-re-releases, keep one thing in mind – it’s an ace day and a great excuse to see many friends in various spots throughout your city you may not have seen in a hot minute. Great live performances from MC’s, DJ’s & limited edition wax will be the flavour of the day. To all the diggers & hanger-on-ers, enjoy your day! I certainly will.

Here is a select few events happening in the Melbourne Hip Hop scene. For more info on your city hit this link…

People all over the world woke up on the first day of 2016 to the tragic news of UK producer Mark B passing away. Friends and fans have been paying their respects by sharing memories of a man who inspired many and helped define the sound of hip-hop music in the UK.

As a tribute from the team at Run Royal we have selected 5 songs to share that Mark produced. Rest In Peace to a true King of the Beats, we’ll go diggin’ in the next life.

Late last year Debonair P (Gentleman’s Relief) teamed up with O.C. (DITC) and dropped a dope 4 track EP ‘Dive In’. For someone who flew half way across Australia to see O.C. live in early twenty fifteen, the year couldn’t of ended any better. After almost a month of bangin’ the digital format I was excited to hear that vinyl pre-orders were shipping this week and felt the urge to share with y’all..

DP provides moody soundscapes setting a perfect background for O’s forethought and skills tight cut chorus’ on all 4 joints which I found refreshing after bumping the rhyme chorus heavy classic ‘Trophies’. O.C. did what he does best and put you all in check with deep conscious lyrics and a smooth delivery that he makes sound seemingly effortless.

The bandcamp D/L came with bonus instrumentals and remixes but left me hanging for more; like a good extended play should. I don’t even need to say it, if you’re reading this blog then this is probably your shit too! Check the soundcloud snippets below.

For those who have got to have it on wax, there are still some copies available HERE

Run Royal proudly presents it’s 1st official DJ Cut n Paste Mix just in time for Christmas. “The Royal Runners” (Chubba & Heata), have each produced a special Christmas Mix for your day & night shenanigans for the upcoming special day. Heavy on the Funk & Soul tip, the fellas have carefully hand selected tracks from their 45,LP,VHS & DVD collections to bring y’all a mix that reflects the kind of music they want people to hear come Christmas Day. Don’t except the obvious Mariah Buble Sinatra on Death Row played out tunes here. Way deeper than that. More Northern Pole & Funk than candy junk!

It’s a free download so click on the links below and enjoy what the fellas have constructed for the festive season. Much respect Fam and thank-you all for your continued support and interest in the Run Royal website.

Broken Tooth Entertainment honcho CIECMATE has just released his new EP entitled “Yang”. Side A contains four tracks and the B Side hosts the instrumentals. The EP also features the legendary HG soldier Gargoyle on the track “The Drill” alongside HG/BTE artists. Only available on wax through http://www.brokentoothentertainment.bigcartel.com & all good independent record stores. Check it out!

Tomorrow the 26th November marks the official kick off for the Kings Konekted-Corrupted Citizens LP trilogy of terror. We’re launching the release in 3 key parts with bits n pieces littered in between over the next couple of months, so please keep Unkut Recordings bookmarked on all media forms for updates regularly.

Pt.1 excitingly commences tomorrow with both the CD pre sale, by itself & in a LTD CD & T-Shirt pre sale pack and the launch of the first video to accompany the release.

The CD will continue to sell throughout the campaign. Many heads get caught sleepin’ on the humble CD these days with the recent love for black plastic, but best believe you don’t wanna sleep on this CD…
Like all good hard to obtain triple threats in any collection, each format brings something different to the next, in this case, the CD is packed with goodies from the 16 track deep audio to the incredible photography, illustration & design courtesy of Josh Davis, Sam Hillcoat and April77 respectively, throughout the packaging, including a 20 page booklet containing all track lyrics.

The CD/Tee pack is limited. We’ll be running limited quantities of each merch design dropping in conjunction with each audio format. The first flavour is in theme with the title track.
Pre orders for the 1st pack will run from THURSDAY 26th NOVEMBER – SUNDAY 29th NOVEMBER.
NO NEED TO PANIC, that’s 4 days and nights to lock in your pack with selected size. After Sunday, we will pull the CD / Tee pre order from the site. That style T-Shirt will then only be available from supporting stores in limited sizes.

Tomorrow night the first big visual component will also unfold.
The clip for the track “Value Of Adaption” will unveil across the globe at 8pm AEDT. Set aside an hour and tune in for youtube links to get a glimpse of this 5 minute plus banger. Unkut Recs award winning visual squadron have taken this one well beyond, so please do take the time to pop the corn, chill the brews, and press repeat…

Digi, Tape & Wax to follow to complete the cipher, but when the shits pure dope, only a little at a time…

On behalf of all involved in the entire project, we thank you for your support in advance and hope you enjoy the ride.

I recently caught this doc on Netflix during the week, and I must say, I can’t get it out of my head. It’s a monster. This has to be one of the most interesting films I have seen in a while and certainly one of the most unique approaches in capturing the evolution of the Hip Hop Culture.

It follows the beginnings of the infamous South Bronx gang “The Ghetto Brothers” and then proceeds to tell the story of rival gangs from the corners and boroughs of New York in the 1970’s. I’m not going to give too much away here so I’ll keep it brief…

The stock footage, interviews, narrative and love shown to this project are evident throughout. An amazing and educational watch so rare in our culture nowadays. Here lies the true story of “The Warriors”. Also, the “Ghetto Brothers” released an album in 1972. If you have a lazy $2000 laying around, jump on Discogs, there’s an OG there. Highly recommended.